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Pacolet Milliken, CommunityWorks invest $1M in affordable housing

Molly Hulsey //July 14, 2021//

Pacolet Milliken, CommunityWorks invest $1M in affordable housing

Molly Hulsey //July 14, 2021//

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Pacolet Milliken LLC, a privately owned investment company headquartered in Greenville, is marrying its resources to the CommunityWorks organization’s role as an affordable housing keystone through a $1 million co-investment.

The commitment will expand the investment and financial capacity of CommunityWorks, which has supported affordable housing initiatives across the state since the organization’s inception in 2008.

“As the Upstate continues to grow, affordable housing becomes a more compelling issue,” William Crawford, CEO of Pacolet Milliken, said in a news release. “Pacolet wants to have a direct impact, and CommunityWorks is an exceptional partner in that effort.”

Brent Abbott, senior vice president and director of real estate acquisitions at Pacolet Milliken, is a board member of CommunityWorks and is spearheading the co-investment program for Pacolet.

“The team at Pacolet Milliken is excited and proud to support the outstanding efforts of CommunityWorks in affordable housing,” Abbott said in the release. “Tammie Hoy Hawkins and her team are deeply committed to shrinking the deficit of housing options available to lower income individuals and families in South Carolina. We share these values and look forward to growing our partnership.”   

Hawkins is CEO of CommunityWorks.

The first co-investment between Pacolet and CommunityWorks, Norris Ridge Apartments in Spartanburg, closed in March. The formerly blighted low-income community will soon be replaced with 130 affordable units.

“CommunityWorks is thrilled that Pacolet Milliken has taken the lead on co-investing in affordable housing projects with our organization,” Hawkins said in the news release. “As a community development financial institution, we are always looking for strategic partners to invest in development projects that target underserved individuals and areas. We hope that other values-oriented organizations will see this partnership with Pacolet Milliken as an effective model to meaningfully impact our communities.”

Certified by the U.S. Treasury Department as a community development financial institution, CommunityWorks operates a community loan fund that supports community economic development. Since 2008, CommunityWorks has generated more than $291 million in local economic impact, and has served more than 6,044 families through small and micro business loans, business and financial coaching, affordable housing and community loans, and down payment assistance, according to the release.

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